Bottle carrier



Jan. 18, 1944. J. 1.. LYoNs, JR 2,339,278

' BOTTLE CARRIER Filed Nov. s, 1941 2 sheets-sheet 2 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE BOTTLE CARRIER Joseph L. Lyons, Jr., Chicago, Ill.,assignor to Lyne Co., Chicago, Ill., a. corporation of IllinoisApplication November 5, 1941, Serial No. 417,939

Claims.

This invention relates to carriers for bottles and the like andparticularly to those made from sheet material such as cardboard.

In the merchandising of bottled goods such as soft drinks and the likeit has been found desirable to package the bottles in a carrier in whichthey may be conveniently transported by the purchaser. It is customaryto so arrange such carriers that six bottles may be disposed in uprightposition therein in two rows of three bottles each. A carrying handle isusually disposed between the two rows of bottles and the upper endthereof, which projects above the tops of the bottles, is arranged toafford a handle portion which may be grasped by the purchaser to liftand carry the package thus provided.

Bottle carriers of the aforesaid character must of course be capable ofproduction at a low cost, but the construction must also be such as tofacilitate loading and unloading of the carriers, and to afford firm andreliable support for the bottles loaded in the carrier. In attainingsuch a secure and firm positioning of the bottles in the carrier whileconstructing the carrier of a relatively thin cardboard material. it hasheretofore been the practice to provide an inturned reinforcing flangeor strip along the edges of the carrier, and the primary object of thepresent invention is to impart added utility to such a reinforcing stripso as to attain full cooperation of this inturned reinforcing strip withthe other elements in producing the desired strength and other desirablequalities in the carrier.

In my Patent No. 2,239,564, patented April 22, 1941, such a reinforcingstrip was provided along certain portions of the end edges of thecarrier` and this reinforcing strip, along the end edges of the bottlereceiving sections, was arranged to depend from the ends of the bottlereceiving sections to provide a reinforcing and bottle retaining flap.In the collapsed carton, that is before use or erection of the carton,such end flaps in my prior construction were disposed between bottlecushioning flaps extending downwardly from the handle sections, and theformation of these bottle cushioning flaps was such that in the courseof erection of the carton, the bottle cushioning flaps acted upon theend flaps to force the same toward their desired downwardlv extendingpositions. At their remote ends. that is at the ends adjacent to thevertical side walls nf the carrier. the end flaps in my prior carrierwere bent to form bellows folds whereby the end flaps were joined to thestrip lying along the adjacent side walls of the carrier, but at theiradjacent ends the end fiaps were free to move in an outward directionaway from the bottles loaded in the carrier. Hence, the only restrainingaction against such outward displacement of the end flaps was providedby the bellows folds. In view of the foregoing it is an important objectof the present invention to enable the inner or adjacent ends of bottleretaining end naps of this character to be held against outwarddisplacement; and ancillary objects related to the foregoing are toenable the bottle cushioning flaps to impart an automatic unfoldingaction to the end flaps even though these end flaps are arranged to beheld at their adjacent ends against undesired outward displacement, andto enable such added support to be afforded in the end flaps withoutrequiring a cardboard blank of excessive width.

Where the adjacent ends of the end flaps were free to swing outwardly asin my aforesaid prior patent, the useful force or weight transmittingaction which could be obtained by reason of the end flaps was limited bythe strength of the upper portion of the adjacent web defining theadjacent edge of the end bottle opening, and it is another object of thepresent invention to enable the inherent strength of the material in theend flaps to be utilized in supporting the bottles in the carrier. Inconnection with the foregoing object it will be evident that the freeedge of the bellows fold in a bottle carrier of this character normallyengages the side of an end bottle mounted in the carrier, but suchengagement has in the past been ineffective as a weight supporting meanssince such engagement could be offset or disabled by outward bending ofthe end fiap of the carrier, and in view of the foregoing another objectof the invention is to enable the bellows fold in such an instance toexert a bottle clamping and supporting action upon the bottle which isengaged therewith.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent fromthe following description and claims and are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show a preferredembodiment and the principle thereof and what I now consider to be thebest mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle. Otherembodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principlemay be used and structural changes may be made as desired by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the present invention and thepurview of the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a bottle carrier embodying thefeatures of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an end elevational view of the bottle carrier shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the blank from which the bottle carrier shownin Fig. 1 is formed, the positions at which the various fastening meanswill subsequently be located in assembling the carrier being indicatedby broken lines.

Fig. 4 is a fragmental perspective view illustrating the automaticunfolding action exerted upon the end flaps.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the assembled bottle carrier with the partsillustrated in the positions which' they assume as the carrier isoriginally assembled in collapsed form for storage or shipping purposes;and

Fig. 6 is a fragmental vertical sectional view taken along the line 6-6of Fig. 5 and showing the relationship of the parts when the bottlecarrier is in its collapsed relation.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated a bottle carrier Il),made from a sheet material such as cardboard, to include a bottom wallII, side walls I2 pivoted to and extending upwardly from the oppositeside edges of the bottom wall II, bottle receiving sections I5 pivotallyconnected to the upper edges of the side walls I2, and a handle sectionI6 pivoted to the upper edges of the bottle receiving sections I5 so asto extend upwardly somewh'at beyond the upper ends of bottles I1 whichmay be loaded therein. In the form herein shown the bottle carrier I isparticularly adapted for carrying six bottles of a predetermined sizeand design, these bottles being disposed in the bottle receivingsections in two parallel rows of three bottles each located on oppositesides of the handle I6. Each of the bottle receiving sections |5 hasthree bottle receiving openings therein so that each bottle may bemounted in an individual opening in the bottle receiving sections. Thusa central bottle receiving opening is provided in each of the bottlereceiving sections I5, while bottle receiving openings 2| for the endbottles of each row are formed in each bottle receiving section I5adjacent to the opposite ends of the bottle receiving section. Hence thebottles I1 may be individually inserted downwardly into the bottlereceiving openings 20 or 2| so as to rest upon the bottom wall II, andwhen the carrier has been thus loaded the user may grasp the handle I6and lift the same throughl engagement of a grasping opening 22 formedtherein.

Such a bottle carrier I0 may be formed through the use of a one-pieceblank such as that shown in Fig. 3, this blank being formed from a sheetof material such as cardboard. The outline of the blank is generallyrectangular and the various elements of the carrier are so arranged uponthe blank that the h'andle section I6 is formed by sections I6' and I6"formed in the blank adjacent to the opposite ends thereof. One boundaryor edge of the section I6' is defined by an end edge 23 of the blank.while with respect to the'section IB" the corresponding boundary isprovided by a fold line 23', the fold line 23' being utilized to join aspacing flap 24 to the section I6". Along the side edges of the sectionsI6' and I6" reinforcing edge strips 26' and 26" are formed so as to beconnected to the side edges of the sections I6' and I6" respectively byfold lines 21 and 21". The two bottles receiving sections I5 arearranged to be adjacent to the sections IS and I6", and are joinedthereto by fold lines 28. The other edge of each one of the bottlereceiving sections I5 is joined by a fold line 29 to the upper edge ofthe adjacent side wall I2, while the bottom wall is joined to the loweredges of the side walls I2 by fold lines 30. The bottom wall I| ispreferably formed in the two sections II' and II which' are joined in apivotal manner by a fold line 3|, and it is to be observed that the foldline 3| is located midway between the edge 23 and the fold line 23'.

The handle 22 is preferably formed by an opening 22' formed in thesection I6 and a similarly formed opening 22" in the section I6, and inorder to provide a rounded edge for engagement with the fingers of auser, a ap 32 is formed along the edge of the opening 22' which isadjacent to the fold line 23'. The flap 32 is adapted to be forcedthrough the opening 22 to thereby afford a more convenient means forsupporting and transporting the carrier.

When the carrier is to be assembled from the blank shown in Fig. 3, theblank is folded along the central fold line 3| to thereby position thetwo sections I6' and I6" in face to face relation. However, since thepresent carrier is intended and adapted for manufacture from arelatively thin cardboard sheet and is therefore provided withreinforcing flaps or strips such as the flap 24 and the strips 26 and26", such reinforcing means are folded inwardly so that when the blankis folded along the line 3| these reinforcing means will be locatedbetween the two opposed sections I6 and I6. Thus, along the sides of thehandle section I6, this handle section will comprise four thicknesses ofcardboard. and in order to avoid undue bulk or thickness of the handlesection adjacent its upper corners, an upper portion of the reinforcingstrips 26" is cut away as indicated at 33 in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Theblank shown in Fig. 3 is also formed to provide additional reinforcingmeans along the end edges of the other elements of the carrier, and tothis end a continuous reinforcing strip is formed along the ends of thebottom sections and II", the side wall sections I2' and the bottlereceiving sections I5, and since such reinforcing strips must also befolded so as to lie in the space between the opposed portions of thecarrier, these reinforcing strips are joined to each other and to theseveral parts of the blank by suitable fold lines. Thus the reinforcingstrip along each edge of the blank comprises portions 35 joined to thebottom sections II and II" by fold lines 36 and joined to each other bya fold line 31. The reinforcing strip along each end of each' side wallcomprises a portion 38 joined to the side wall by a fold line 39 andconnected to the adjacent reinforcing strip portion 35 by a fold line40.

At the opposite ends of the bottle receiving sections I5 the reinforcingstrip includes a section 4| each joined to the adjacent bottle receivingsection by fold line 42 and having angulariy related fold lines 43 and44 and an intermediate triangularly formed piece 45 of car dboardconnecting the same to the adjacent re nforcing section 38 in such amanner as to afford means for forming a bellows fold. At the end whichis adjacent to the handle section each reinforcing strip 4| has anangulariy disposed fold line 46 formed therein which joins the section4| to a projecting arm portion 41. The arm portion 41 is formed from thecardboard material which lies ,between the section 4I and thereinforcing strip 26', there being va severed line 48 separating the arm41 from the adjacent strip 26', and there being a severed line 49aligned with the 'fold line 21 to extend from the end of the strip 26'to the fold line 28. Thus in the formation of the carrier thereinforcing strips 26" and 26", the strips 4|, 38 and 35 and the strip26" are all folded inwardly along the fold lines which are aligned withthe fold line 21 to thereby position all of-these parts adjacent to oneface of the` blank. The flap 24 is also folded so as to be in positionagainst this gether, as will hereinafter be described, to provide thecompleted carrier in its collapsed form. In forming the bottle receivingopenings and 2|, in the ilat blank of Fig. 3, the forming dies are soarranged as to cut out certain portions of the bottle receiving sectionswhile allowing other portions thereof to remain in position as bottlecush- 2 ioning flaps. Thus the central bottle opening 20 is formed bysevered lines 56 to provide a downwardly extending tongue 5| which tendsto remain in the plane of the section of the handle I6 to which it isattached, to thereby form a bottle 1 cushioning flap located between thetwo bottles positioned in the two central openings 20. Below the severedline 50 and substantially midway of the horizontal width of the tongue5I, the material of the bottle receiving section is divided by avertically located severing line 52, the lower end of the severing line52 intersecting with a cut out portion 53. Thus the lines 50, 52 and 53define flaps 54- which may be bent into downwardly extending relationalong fold lines 55, thereby to afford the opening 20 through which abottle I1 may be inserted downwardly, and at the same time formingcushioning naps 54 along opposite sides of the bottle and a cushioningflap 5I for engagement by the side of the bottle opposite from theadjacent side wall I2.

The bottle receiving openings 2| are formed by arcuate severing lines 56and 51, the severing line 51 being disposed so as to extend from thefold line 28 tothe fold line 29 adjacent to the fold line 42, Fig. 3.The severing line 56 extends in an arcuate manner upwardly from the foldline 29 and meets a severing line 58 which defines one side of anadditional bottle cushioning flap 59. Another edge of the flap 59 isdefined by a severing line 60 parallel to the fold line 55 while anotheredge is defined by a severing line 6I parallel to the severing line 58,and the iiap 59 which is thus formed is connected to the adjacent flap54 by a portion 55' of the fold line 55. In thus forming the bottlereceiving opening 2| a depending bottle cushioning flap 63 is formedfrom the material located between the severing lines 51 and 6|). and oneboundary of the cushioningflap 63 is defined by a severing line 64 whichextends upwardly from the line 6I to the fold line 29. 'Ihus the iiap 63tends, in the erection of the carrier, to remain in the plane of thehandle portion upon which it is formed.

. It will beobserved in Fig. 5 of the drawings that when the carrier isin its collapsed relation the bottle cushioning flaps 63 partiallyoverlie the reinforcing strip 4I formed on the adjacent end of thebottle receiving section so that when a user erects the bottle carrier,an edge 65 of the I'lly depending flap 83 acts upon the adjacent strip4| to force this strip into or toward a downwardly projecting position,thereby to automatically shift the strip '4| into its downwardlyextending operative position. As such movement of the strip 4|progresses the section I8 of the reinforcing strip remains in positionagainst the inside of the adjacent side wall I2 so that the triangularsection 45 'of the reinforcing strip is bent to the position shown inFig. 2,.the bending movement taking place along the bellows fold lines43 and 44'.`

In accordance with the presentinvention the Varms 41 are arranged to actso as to limit such movement of the strips 4I, and in accomplishing thisfunction the arms bend with relation to the strip 4| along the angularlypositioned fold line 46. Thus the arms 41 shift from the position shownin Fig. 5 to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 4, and in this movementthe arms approach an abutting relationship with respect to a stationarystop means.- The stop means in the present instance are provided bystaples 10 which are employed in fastening the two sections I6' and I6"together. The arms 41 normally have their outer edges 41 disposedsubstantially parallel to the edges of the handle I6 but as the stripsor end aps 4| are bent toward their downwardly projecting positions, thearm 41 isprotated about an axis located at the juncture of the edges ofthe handle section and the bottle receiving section, thereby to shiftthe outer edge 41" of the arm toward the adjacent staple 10. Thus therotative movement which may be imparted to the strips 4| is limited, andthe strip 4I is retained in such a position that it will act positivelyto prevent movement of the bottom portions of the bottles outwardly ofthe carrier in a direction endwise of the carrier. It will be observedof course, that additional fastening means 1| are provided between thehandle portions I6' and I6" just above the tongue 5I, while otherfastening means in the form of staples 13 are utilized above the outerends of the handle opening 22 to hold the sections I6 and I6" together.

The provision of means whereby outward swinging movement of the adjacentends of the strips 4I is prevented not only eliminatesthe possibility ofendwise displacement of the bottles in the carrier, but also serves toimpart a strengthening and weight transmitting function to the strips 4|to an extent which has heretofore been unattainable. Thus the limitationupon the movement of the arms 41 causes these arms to hold the strips 4|in firm clamping engagement with the bottles, and as thearms 41 approachthe limit of their movement -they will wedge between the material of thetwo sides of the handle section adjacent to and above the adjacentfastening staple 10. Thus the upper inner ends of the strips 4I have aforce orweight transmitting connection with the handle I6 so thatanyweight applied to the outer. or lower ends of the strips 4I may betransmitted to the handle section I6. Because of this construction theend fiapslor strips 4I serve a function which they have Anot heretoforepossessed. In this connection particular attention. is directed to theaction of the strips 4| in exertinga bottle supporting action upon theadjacent bottles. Thus the free edge 45' of each triangular portion 45is engaged with the side of the bottle, and since the position ofthestrips 4| is accurately determined y by the arms 41 and the associatedmeans, the edges 45 are heldin firm weight-supporting relation to thebottles. The weight which is thus appliedto the edges` I5' of thetriangular members iis thus transmitted to the strips 4I and by the arms41 and the staples 10 to the handle section I6. Hence with the presentconstruction the strength of the web portions of the bottle receivingsections does not constitute the criterion upon which the weight ofthe-cardboard stock must be based, and therefore the presentconstruction enables the carrier to be made more economically than priorcarriers. An outstanding feature of the present construction is that thearms 41 are formed from portions of the stock which do not projectbeyond the outer edges of the other reinforcing strip portions, and bythis arrangement a minimum amount of cardboard stock is required for theproduction of the carrier.

The location of the staples is, of course, an important element inattaining maximum utility of the arms 41 and the end flaps or strips 4|,but since such location is determined and fixed in the set up of theproduction machinery, the desired accuracy of location may be easilyattained. Moreover, since this location of the staples 10 governs theamount of outward. movement of the end flaps 4i, the present carrier maybe adapted for maximum utility with either bulged or straight sizebottles of the same general size merely through slight re-location ofthe position at which the staples 10 are inserted.

From the foregoing it will -be apparent that the present inventionprovides a bottle carrier which holds the bottles more securely inposition, and which utilized the inherent strength of the cardboard orother sheet material in a novel manner which produces a moresatisfactory and more economical carrier. .l It will be understood thatin the foregoing I have described but a selected embodiment of myinvention. Hence, while I have illustrated and described a preferredembodiment of my invention it is to be understood that this is capableof variation and modification and I therefore do not wish to be limitedto the precise details set forth but desire to avail myself of suchchanges and alterations as fall within the purview of the followingclaims.

I claim:

l. A preformed collapsible bottle carrier of the character describedformed from sheet material such as cardboard to provide a bottom wallcomprising two pivotally connected bottom sections, a pair of side wallsections pivoted to and extending upwardly from the remote edges of saidbottom panels, bottle receiving sections pivoted to the upper edges ofsaid side walls and having bottle receiving openings therein throughwhich bottles may be inserted downwardly to rest on said bottom panels,a handle section pivotally connected to and extending upwardly from theadjacent edges of said bottle receiving sections, said handle sectionhaving a finger gripping opening formed therein, continuous reinforcingstrips formed on the ends of said bottom sections, said side wallsections and said bottle receiving sections, said strips being foldedwith respect to the sections on which they are formed so as to lieagainst the inner faces of such sections when said carrier is collapsed,said strips at the junctures of said side wall sections and said bottlereceiving sections being formed with bellows folds therein and theportions of said strips which are formed on said bottle reecivingsections constituting bottle retaining flaps and being adapted to ony bemoved into downwardly extending active positions when the carrier iserected, and said flaps at the junctures of said bottle receivingsections and said handle section having arms formed thereon as endwisecontinuations of said strips, extending upwardly in planes parallel andad- `iacent to the plane of said handle section, said arms being movableby said flaps in a pivotal manner in said planes and in inward anddownward directions as the associated flaps are moved downwardly andoutwardly to said active positions, and means on said handle sectioncooperating with said arms to limit such inward and downward movement ofthe arms and thereby limit the downward and outward movement ci' saidflaps.

2. A preformed collapsible bottle carrier of the character describedformed from sheet material such as cardboard to provide a bottom wallcomprising two pivotally connected bottom sections, a pair of side Wallsections pivoted to and extending upwardly from the remote edges of saidbottom panels, bottle receiving sections pivoted to the upper edges ofsaid side walls and having bottle receiving openings therein throughwhich bottles may be inserted downwardly to rest on said bottom panels,a handle section pivotally connected to and extending upwardly from theadjacent edges of said bottle receiving sections, said handle sectionhaving a finger gripping opening formed therein, continuous reinforcingstrips formed on the ends of said bottom sections, said side wallsections and saidv bottle receiving sections, said strips being foldedso as to lie against the inner faces of the sections to which they areattached when said carrier is collapsed, said strips at the junctures ofsaid side wall sections and said bottle receiving sections being formedwith bellows folds therein and the portions of said strips which areformedon said bottle receiving sections constituting bottle retainingflaps and being adapted to be moved into downwardly extending activepositions when the carrier is erected, and said flaps at the juncturesof said bottle receiving sections and said handle section having armsformed thereon from continuations of said strips and extending upwardlyin planes parallel and adjacent to the plane of said handle section andconnected to said strips by angularly related fold lines, said armsbeing movable by said flaps in a pivotal manner in said planes and ininward and downward directions as the associated flaps are moveddownwardly and outwardly to said active positions, and means on saidhandle section acting as stops in the path of movement of said arms tolimit such inward and downward movement of the arms and thereby limitthe downward and outward movement of said aps.

3. A preformed collapsible bottle carrier of the character describedformed from sheet material such as cardboard to provide a bottom wallcomprising two pivotally connected panels, a pair of side wall sectionspivoted to and extending upwardly from the remote edges of said bottompanels, bottle receiving sections pivoted to the upper edges of saidside walls and having bottle receiving openings therein through whichbottles may be inserted downwardly to rest on said bottom panels, ahandle portion pivotally connected to and extending upwardly from theadjacent edges of said bottle receiving sections, said handle portionhaving a finger gripping opening formed therein, inturned marginalreinforcing strips at the ends of all of said sections folded into thespace between said sections when'the carrier is collapsed, the portionsof said strips at the ends of said bottle receiving sections beingadapted to form depending bottle retaining aps and each being connectedat one of its ends by a bellows fold to the portion of said strip alongthe adjacent side wall section, depending bottle cushioning aps formedon said handle portion to lie against the outer faces of said retainingflaps when the carrier is collapsed and said depending bottle cushioningflaps being formed with edge portions so disposed with relation to saidretaining aps that said e'dge portions are operable in the erection ofthe carrier to shift said ward and downward directions as the associatedflaps are moved downwardly and outwardly to said active positions, andmeans on said handle section acting as stops in the path of movement ofsaid arms to limit such inward and downward movement of the arms andthereby limit the downward and outward movement of said flaps.

4. A preformed collapsible bottle carrier of the character describedformed from sheet material such as cardboard to provide a bottom wallcomprising two pivotally connected bottom sections, a pair of side wallsections pivoted to and extending upwardly from the remote edges of saidbottom panels, bottle receiving sections pivoted to the upper edges ofsaid side walls and having bottle receiving openings therein throughwhich bottles may be inserted downwardly to rest on said bottom panels,a two layer handle section having onefof its layers pivotally connectedto and extending upwardly from the adjacent edges of each of said bottlereceiving sections, sa'id handle section having a finger grippingopening formed therein, reinforcing strips formed on the ends of saidside wall sections and extending along said bottle receiving sections,said strips being folded so as to lie against the inner faces of thesections to which they are attached when said carrier is collapsed, saidstrips at the junctures of said side wall sections and said bottlereceiving sections being formed with connecting bellows folds, and saidstrips at the junctures of said bottle receiving sections and saidhandle section having arms formed thereon from continuations of saidstrips so that said arms extend beyond'said bottle receiving sectionsand into the space between the layers of said handle, and fasteningelements extending between said layers of the handle section andpositioned for engagement by said arms to limit downward and outwardmovement of the portions of said strips which are attached to saidbottle receiving sections.

5. A preformed collapsible bottle carrier of the character `describedformed from sheet material such as cardboard to provide a bottom wallcomprising two pivotally connected bottom sections,

` a pair of side wall sections pivoted to and extending upwardly fromthe remote edges of said bottom panels, lbottle receiving sectionspivoted to the upper edges of said side walls and having bottlereceiving openings therein through which bottles may be inserteddownwardly to rest on said bottom panels, a handle formed from twolayers of material one layer of which is pivotally connected to andextends upwardly from the adjacent edges of each of said bottlereceiving sections, said handle having a nger gripping opening formedtherein, reinforcing strips formed on the ends of said side wallsections and said bottle receiving sections, said strips being folded soas to lie against the inner faces of the sections to which they areattached when said carrier is collapsed and the strips on adjacent wallsections and bottle receiving sections being interconnected at thejunctures of said side wall sections and said bottle receiving sectionsby bellows folds formed therein, and said strips at the junctures ofsaid bottle receiving sections and said handle having arms formedthereon from continuations of said stripsso that said arms extend intothe space between said layers of said handle, and fastening meansextending between said layers of said handle positioned to be engaged bysaid arms to limit downward and outward movement of the portions of saidstrips which are attached to said bottle receiving sections, saidfastening means serving to hold said layers in predetermined closerelationship whereby said arms move into a wedged relationbetween thelayers of the handle and thereby assume a weight transmitting relationto said handle.

JOSEPH Il. LYONS, JR.

2,339,278.J0seph L. Lyons, JT., Chicago, Ill. BOTTLE CARRIER. Patentdated Jan. 18, 1944. Disclaimer filed Oct. 12, 1951, by the assignee,Empz'ie Bom 'orpora-zfz'on. Hereby enters this disclaimer to claims 1 to5, inclusive, of said patent.

[Ooz'al Gazette November 13. 1.951.]

